Issue Date: February 3, 2008
Build your bones
Experts estimate that 10 million Americans -- 80% of them women -- have osteoporosis, a disease that robs bones of their strength, leaving sufferers vulnerable to fractures.
Surprise bone risk:
Being depressed
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Although we can't control every osteoporosis risk factor -- two major risks are being female and having a small frame -- we can take steps to strengthen and protect our bones.
Here are five suggestions from a recent issue of Harvard Women's Health Watch:
Eat a healthy diet that provides bone-building potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium and vitamin D. Avoid ultra-low-calorie diets or those that eliminate entire food groups; they skimp on nutrients.
Exercise 30 minutes per day and include weight-bearing activity (brisk walking or running) and resistance exercise (lifting weights or using resistance bands).
Don't smoke. Bones lose density faster and break more often in female and/or elderly smokers.
Avoid being too thin. You're at risk if you weigh less than 127 pounds or your body mass index is less than 21. Also, women who lose weightat menopause are morelikely to lose bone mass.
Ask your doctor about getting a bone-mineral density screening test if you're being treated for depression. Depression is linked to bone loss.
-- Peggy J. Noonan
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